He is leaving the door open in case there is mutual interest there. Most coaches deny their potential interest in other vacancies when they come up. Others don’t comment.

Stoops is merely letting the speculation run and won’t stop any of it. That way, if he does take the job, it won’t be like when Nick Saban told the Miami Dolphins “I’m not going to be the Alabama coach.”

He won’t have to backtrack and apologize later.

What does this mean going forward?

It’s too early to tell.

Stoops is notoriously conservative in these matters and has often been rumored as a candidate for other head coaching jobs.

If his previous track record holds true, then he’ll remain at Oklahoma and continue to let people speculate.

There is always the allure, however, of an NFL job and more money, so that could play a factor in potential interest he may have in the position going forward.